Personal Hacks

A Warning To All Bloggers

I have been pondering about whether or not to write it for the past 24 hours and due to my lack of anger control, the decision was to write it. Today I want to address an issue that I feel every blogger, big or small has encountered.

This issue is receiving ‘free‘ products. So, let me begin by outlining a few facts:

The product is NEVER sent to you for ‘free’. Your time in taking photos, writing the article, promoting the article and putting energy into that article is not FREE.

You (depending on your ethics) have EVERY right to say whatever it is you want to say about the product. Good or bad.

To smaller businesses, you are an asset to them. Yes, it’s great to receive stuff for ‘free’ but without a handful of influential bloggers, their product would be getting little to no attention.

It is becoming illegal and frowned upon to not state when you have received something for FREE.

Where has this stemmed from?

Basically, I was told by a company (yesterday!) how I must not really mention how I came about their products and most appallingly of all…I was told how to LINK to them, not once but twice. They asked me for two links to their website and how I should go about that. This final bit might not shock all of you but this is completely against googles rules, is really becoming illegal and one day it won’t be them that gets in trouble but YOU and your blog.

To buy a link from a proper SEO firm (although this is frowned upon aswell ) will set you back minimum around 150$. If I sold links/bought links with this blog (which I don’t!) this is what people would have to pay me, a little blogger. Now imagine I am giving away these links for FREE to this company who are assuming they are doing me a favour by sending me these FREE products? It just doesn’t add up, does it?

The reason I am so mad is because these companies prey on smaller bloggers, on bloggers who they think ‘won’t understand’. I am so sick and tired of companies exploiting small bloggers, you need to help put an end to it by knowing you’re just as important to them as they think they are to you.

I have been guilty of accepting products I didn’t really want when I first started blogging, we all have and if this company had approached me back then I would have snapped them up at the chance for a ‘freebie’ so I don’t blame anyone that has complied with their terms before properly understanding the implications.

When To Avoid ‘Free’ Products

When you’re asked for ‘do-follow’ links – just like I mention below this should be costing them a fortune and is really frowned upon.

When you’re asked to link to them in ‘different ways’ – this is so good for their link profile and is benefiting them massively. They should be paying even the smallest of bloggers 100$.

If they tell you not to state you received the product for free.

If they tell you not to say bad things about their product.

When you don’t feel comfortable through emails. If I am not happy with the PR team or company itself I cut off all ties straight away.

If they start telling you what you can and can’t do.

Please just remember that you’re essential to them and they should be either paying you or sending you their products with no expectations. Please, never not state that your product was sent to you and please never give a company a do-follow link unless they have paid or you feel comfortable giving away such a huge money maker for free.

Some people, myself included charge people if they want a review, other times I allow the product as ‘payment’ if I really like the thing they are sending me. You can see my ‘review your product‘ page and even if you’re a small blogger I strongly suggest you outline that you either want payment or that you are willing to accept their product as a gift.

Don’t get me wrong, all of the companies I have ever worked with have been wonderful and deserve all of the energy I gave them. But you mustn’t forget you are doing them a good thing, by promoting and talking about their product. Yes, you’re usually getting it for ‘free’ but you put so much energy and time into that blog post that it isn’t for free at all because your time costs money.

Not only that but NOBODY has the right to tell you how to link to them, where to link to them and outline that you mustn’t let on that you received their things for free. It’s so bad and it’s you that will lose out in the long run.